Alouettes re-sign all-time franchise sack leader John Bowman

Defensive end John Bowman has re-signed in Montreal for the 2018 season.

The 35-year-old was an East all-star in 2017 making 36 tackles, 27 quarterback pressures, nine sacks and two forced fumbles.

“We are happy to have John return to the field with us in 2018. Throughout his career, he has been a true leader on the field and in the locker room,” said Alouettes general manager Kavis Reed said in a statement. “We look forward to John being a leader on our defensive squad and know that the players will look up to him. John is a true Montrealer and we are thrilled that he will have an opportunity to continue playing in front of the best fans in the CFL.”

Bowman is the Alouettes franchise leader with 121 sacks in 200 games since joining Montreal in 2006. He’s a two-time Grey Cup champion with the Als (2009 and 2010). Two times (2010 and 2016) Bowman was named a league all-star.

Little known fact: @kyhebert bet @7Bowman $50 he’d be playing in 2018, despite all of Bowman’s retirement talk.

The Alouettes were LAST in sacks last year. They need new blood. Not the same old tired crew, one year down the road. Reed said the “needed to educate” we fans about the need to build a younger team. Is THIS how you build a younger roster” OLD QB’s and OLD dlinemen?
Consider us “educated”.

We’ve been listening to Reed say things all the way back to his fiasco in Edmonton. I figure there’s pretty much a consensus as to the value of his words, and of the man himself.

The Alouettes were dead last in sacks last year (25). Exactly HALF the league leaders, the Stamps (50).
Aftr 50+ years of watching CFL football, and having watched 2 Montreal CFL franchises go under, ONE pattern has emerged: when a team is wending its way towards dissolution, it stops recruiting young stars of the future, does next to nothing to replace its own ageing stars, and fills its roster with other teams’ stars that have begun to trend downwards.

Reed is a terrible GM. Wetenhall is a terrible owner. Unless this city wants to lose yet another professional sports franchise (go Expos!) something needs to be done. Et ca presse!

Best fans in the CFL? In all my years living in this city, I’ve met (perhaps) a handful of devoted Alouettes fans.

Hamilton? Saskatchewan? Just another Reedism, pandering to the lowest common denominator. We may just beat Toronto, as (un)devoted CFL fans. Only…TO has had HOW MANY failed CFL franchises? Zilch, as far as I can tell. Ottawa has had 2.

Overall, after having our dcorps GUTTED by Reed, so he could afford to pay Darian Durant (ostensibly), the Alouettes defence, which was arguably the best defensive crew in 2016, was in 2017:

LAST in Total Points Allowed: 580 (GreenRiders were 1st allowing 430 points)
LAST in Sacks: 25 (Stamps were 1st with 50)
LAST in Interceptions: 8 (Stamps were 1st with 20)
3rd To LAST in Pass Knockdowns: 49 (Cats were 1st with 58)

So they fired Noel Thorpe, after taking him to the league for wanting to bail a year before. Couldn’t let him go before seriously damaging his career. It’s the Alouettes way.

Look I love John Bowman. He’s a hall of famer to be and a great guy and a wonderful Alouette. I would adopt him as my son. But if the Als think they are going to improve their team by hiring a guy at the end of his career who has lost a step to time, (and that goes for LBJ, Stefan Logan, and Lyries Hebert) they are very much mistaken.